A Labour Frontbencher has been accused of paying tax payer's money to settle a legal dispute with his Parliamentary assistant.
Khalid Mahmood, the Shadow Europe Minister and MP for Perry Barr of Muslim faith was taken to court by Elaina Cohen, his former Jewish girlfriend, who had accused him of religious discrimination. But on the day that an employment tribunal was due to hear her complaint, the case was reportedly settled.
Cohen signed a non-disclosure agreement as a condition of an out-of-court settlement, which prevents her from discussing the case publicly. While the non-disclosure agreement is believed to be standard, MPs have raised concerns over the use of such clausesm which are also referred to as gagging orders, amid concerns that they could be used to “conceal improper, discrimnatory or even illegal behaviour.”
Mahmood's cost of dealing with the claim were allegedly covered by insurance which is funded by the parliamentary expenses system and made available to all MPs. He also received several legal and staffing costs totalling almost £40,000, The Daily Telegraph reported in their front page story.
Birmingham Mail said that at the employment tribunal hearing, in London, where Ms Cohen was due to set out her grievances against the MP was cancelled on the morning it was due to take place, when the pair reached an agreement. Cohen is Mahmood's former girlfriend and the MP was criticised after it was revealed the pair spent nine nights at The Bentley hotel in Kensington, London, at taxpayers' expense in 2004.
The bills were however approved by the Commons authorities - on the grounds that it would have cost the same whether she was there or not - but Mahmood repaid the £175-a-night cost, saying he understood why some constituents were unhappy, the newspaper reported.
Cohen, 60, still works for Mahmood, 57, and accompanied the MP on a trip to Morocco last December. To colleagues who know them, it is no secret that they have a dysfunctional relationship and frequently argue.
Some newspaper reports have highlighted the fact that Ms Cohen is Jewish, and linked the situation to Labour's on-going problems with anti-Semitism. Disagreements between her and Mahmood came to a head after Cohen accused Labour MP Naz Shah of being "anti-Zionist". Shah had responded by reporting Cohen to the police and allegedly saying that the assistant was 'jealous' of her contact with her boss, The Daily Telegraph reported. However Shah had later reportedly admitted that she had made anti-Semitic statements and apologised.
